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Anza Borrego and Chuckwalla Deserts

Anza Borrego country and the Chuckwalla National Monument of California

12 posts

Cary Ranch Pictographs

Cary Ranch Pictographs

Back in 2013, I was invited by Dick Cary to visit his historic Cary Ranch and examine some of the pictographs there. The Mountain Cahuilla Indians first inhabited the ranch area. The site is near a natural pass and an old Indian trail that connects inland Southern California shrublands to

Carizzo Gorge Pictographs

Carizzo Gorge Pictographs

Overlooking the rocky wash of the Carrizo Gorge, down in Anza Borrego State Park, sits a small rock shelter with a unique set of fascinating pictographs hidden inside. The primarily black drawings are of anthropomorphs (human-like figures), suns, stars, nets, and other abstract designs. Some of the pictographs are amazing

Oro Copia Mine

Oro Copia Mine

The Oro Copia (also known as the Dos Palmas) is an old mine in the heart of the Orocopia Mountains. It was discovered in 1892 by Edward Fish, his son G. B. Fish, and C. O. Barker (of Joshua Tree Dam fame). The ore body was reported to be quite

Black Rabbit Petroglyphs

Black Rabbit Petroglyphs

Dan and I took a trip down to the Salton Sea region to look for a small set of petroglyphs I had heard about along a Cahuilla Indian trail. We were determined to find it. Access to the site wasn’t easy; a series of gates and farmland blocked most

Mule Tank Petroglyphs

Mule Tank Petroglyphs

Mule Tank is a small, seasonal tinaja along the foothills of the Mule Mountains along the Colorado River. It is a long walk to any other source of water, so this catchment would have been an essential source of water in this vast and arid region. The petroglyphs themselves are